


Tainted Love

by Alexandria (heartfullofelves)



Category: Xena: Warrior Princess
Genre: Accidental Baby Acquisition, Angst, F/F, Post-Episode: s03e13 One Against An Army, Season/Series 03, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-21
Updated: 2017-01-21
Packaged: 2018-09-18 18:30:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9397679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heartfullofelves/pseuds/Alexandria
Summary: Gabrielle attempts temporary motherhood. Again.





	

After defeating the Persians, Xena fell asleep next to Gabrielle and did not rise for the rest of the day. Gabrielle, just as exhausted and on the brink of death from the poisoned arrow, was completely okay with this fact. She slept for a few hours, woke at the same time as Xena, and after a few sips of water, fell into another deep slumber. It was sunrise when she woke again.

“Hey, Gabrielle.” Xena was at her side in seconds, helping her sit up and giving her some water. “How are you feeling?”

Gabrielle gulped the water in one go, her mouth and throat as dry as Greece. “I’m great,” she announced, and tried to stand. She fainted into Xena’s arms.

* * *

“Okay,” said Xena when Gabrielle opened her eyes again, “that’s enough rest; we need to get moving. Still want to get to Athens?”

“Yeah.” Gabrielle rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, yawning. “You’re getting me some new boots.”

Xena chuckled. “I’ve missed your sense of humour.”

“It’s not my humour I’ve got back, it’s my memory,” Gabrielle grumbled as she rolled over so she could sit. She winced as her stomach gurgled.

“Come on.” Xena patted her shoulder. “We’ll find breakfast once we’ve hit the road. Get up, lazy boots.”

Gabrielle scowled at the mention of boots, but yawned again and got up. Yesterday she’d almost died, she’d taken the antidote, and she’d rested. It was time to get back on the road.

* * *

They approached a village a few hours later, and Gabrielle was about to fall off Argo so Xena decided to rest here. They headed straight for the tavern, a deserted old place where Gabrielle slumped straight into a chair upon entering.

Xena walked up to the man at the bar and ordered whatever passed for nourishment in this dump. She grabbed the two cups of ale he put down. “Say, where I can report the singlehanded defeat of the Persian army?”

* * *

Their late breakfast became a siesta for Gabrielle while Xena went out and reported the recent battle against the Persians. She woke needing to relieve herself, so she went in search of a privy. She had to walk a fair distance from the tavern, but she found what passed for a public toilet on the outskirts of town, beside a pond in which some washerwomen were working and one young boy was bathing. Gabrielle tried not to think about where the waste from the privy had to go. Her heart broke anyway.

She finished in the privy and began retracing her steps back to the tavern. She hadn’t got far when she heard the unmistakeable cry of a baby. She followed the sound over to some reeds; amongst them lay a baby wrapped up tight and bawling as if it were the end of the world. She glanced around but no-one around her had noticed either her or the infant. She picked it up.

It – she couldn’t determine the baby’s gender – stopped crying once she held it in her arms. She rocked it a little, crooning over how cute it was and asking its name, as if a baby that young – she estimated 12 weeks – could tell her its name. 

“Where’s your mother? Your father?” Gabrielle sighed, knowing she could take only one course of action: to look after this child until she found its parents.

She returned to the tavern with the baby cradled in her arms.

* * *

Gabrielle expected Xena, on her return, to make a joke about Gabrielle finding lost babies everywhere, starting but not ending with Gabriel a few years ago. She did not expect Xena to turn pale and demand to know who the baby was and how and where she’d found it.

“I don’t know who this baby is,” she explained with a frown, “or who its parents are. That’s why I took it – to find its parents.”

Xena responded with a cold stare. “Are you sure?”

“Of course I’m sure!” retorted Gabrielle. “Why do you ask– Oh.” Her face fell and she lowered her voice to a hurt whisper. “You’re thinking of Hope.”

Xena didn’t need to say anything for Gabrielle to know she was right.

Tears pricked Gabrielle’s eyes. “Xena, I’m sorry. But this is nothing like that, I promise.”

The baby, as if sensing the tension in the room, began to cry, so Gabrielle rocked it, making shushing noises. She looked back up at Xena.

“This baby is a stranger, and it’s lost. We need to find it a home. Please.” She gazed into Xena’s eyes, willing her to accept.

Xena sighed, and slumped onto the seat next to Gabrielle. “Fine. But we’re giving her back as soon as we find her parents.”

“How do you know it’s a her?”

“I don’t,” answered Xena. “But she needs changing, so we can find out.”

“What can we change her into?” asked Gabrielle, still rocking the baby.

Xena sighed. “You stay here, I’ll go shopping.” She got up and left the tavern again, Gabrielle watching her with a creased brow.

“What are we going to do with you? What are we going to do?” Gabrielle chirped at the baby in her arms. “Where do you live?”

An idea flickered in her mind like a recently-lit candle. She wandered over to the bar, still cooing and smiling at the baby. “Excuse me!” she called.

The innkeeper appeared from the kitchen. “Yes, ma’am?”

“Do you know this baby? I found her – or him – by the village pond.”

The innkeeper shook his head. “I don’t recognise it, but I’ll ask around.”

“Thanks.” Gabrielle smiled in relief. “I’m sure there are some worried parents somewhere nearby.”

“I’m sure there are. Cute little thing, isn’t it? You don’t know if it’s a girl or a boy?”

Gabrielle shook her head. “We’ll find out when we change it.”

The innkeeper nodded. “Alright, I’ll see what I can do. Take care now.” He disappeared back into the kitchen with a little wave to the baby.

As soon as he’d gone, it started wailing. Gabrielle rocked it. “Hey, hey now,” she said. “There’s no need for that; Xena’s gone to get something to change you into. Or are you hungry?” She peered at the infant’s face, as if that could answer her question. “Are you hungry?”

She called the innkeeper back and asked him if he could get something for the baby to eat. He thought for a minute, then told her he could heat up some milk for her before going out to ask the villagers if they knew of a missing baby.

* * *

Gabrielle had almost finishing feeding the baby, who’d closed its eyes and was sucking happily at the canteen in which the innkeeper had served the warm milk, when the doors to the tavern opened. It was Xena. Gabrielle sighed in relief as Xena approached, followed by a peasant man and woman who cried out when they saw the baby. Gabrielle flicked her eyes to Xena, who nodded. Nodding back, she handed the baby over to the peasant woman, who took the child in her arms and started to cry.

“Thank you for looking after her,” said the man, putting his arm around the woman and kissing the baby’s forehead. “We’ve been worried sick.”

“Least I could do.” Gabrielle swallowed a lump in her throat.

“How can we repay you?” the man asked.

Gabrielle exchanged a look with Xena, then looked back at the couple. They were dressed in little more than rags, and she’d seen the state of the village – they had nothing to give.

“It’s alright,” replied Gabrielle. “Just knowing the baby’s safe is enough. What’s her name?”

The mother looked up and, wiping her tears, smiled at Gabrielle. “We’d been wanting a child for years but couldn’t conceive, so we named her Elpis, after the goddess of hope.”

Gabrielle froze.

Xena put her hand on Gabrielle’s shoulder and nodded to the baby’s parents. “Take care of your daughter. I’m glad we could reunite you.”

“Thank you.” The parents’ expressions were of deep gratitude.

“Don’t mention it. We’d better be going.” Xena guided the pale Gabrielle out of the tavern and helped her mount Argo, as her ankle was still causing pain when she walked on it.

Once they’d left the village behind, Xena gazed at Gabrielle and asked, “Are you okay?”

Gabrielle shrugged, unsure if she could speak without crying. Baby Elpis’s mere existence had caused terrible memories to resurface for both her and Xena, and she didn’t trust herself to talk without drowning in a sea of emotions.

“I’ll take that as a no,” Xena almost whispered. “Gabrielle, I’m sorry. That was hard.”

Gabrielle’s lip trembled. “Stop,” she said, voice hoarse. “I need to stop.”

Xena halted, shortening the reigns so Argo, walked beside her, stopped too. Gabrielle slid off Argo’s back and collapsed in the grass on the side of the road. Xena was at her side in moments, holding her as she sobbed. She’d thought she’d cried enough over Hope, but as she’d been with many things about Hope, she was wrong.

Xena embraced her and kissed her forehead, her temple, her cheek, her lips, murmuring sweet words of apology and reassurance. Gabrielle, shaking, wrapped her arms around Xena’s neck and held on for dear life, not caring about the tears and snot she left on Xena’s breastplate.

When she’d cried until she could cry no more, she pulled away from Xena and sniffed. She said nothing about Xena’s own red eyes. What she did say was that they should get going.

Xena gave her one more quick kiss. “To Athens?”

“To Athens,” confirmed Gabrielle as they returned to Argo’s side. “Where you will buy me a new pair of boots.”

Xena helped Gabrielle into the saddle. “You can’t let it go, can ya?”

Gabrielle really couldn’t.

**Author's Note:**

> frostbite883 said: “Would you do a story with Gabby trying to convince Xena in taking care of a baby girl until they can find a home for her instead?”


End file.
